Never judge a book by it's cover. This is a saying every reader has heard time and time again. Some may follow it's lesson, while others, like myself, don't pay any attention to that saying and completely ignore it. "The Lord of the Rings" was one of those books that I rather not read,or so I thought. The first time I saw the movie "The Lord of the Rings", for some reason I hated it. But after failing to find any interest in the other books I read, I decided to give "The Lord of the Rings and the Two Towers" a try. To my astonishment I loved it. I loved every bit of it. The Lord of the Rings and The Two Towers is a great book to read for a number of reasons : it displays a great deal of courage,it teaches us that friendship never hurt anyone and the author is very detailed when writing about the characters in this book.
Legolas
Aragorn
Grandulf the White Wizard
Gimli
L to R: Pippin, Sam, Frodo & Merry
Theoden
Eomer
Courage is a characteristic that all the characters in the book possess. Merry and Pippin are two hobbits (which are creatures that are short and are hole dwellers) in this story that are faced with many challenges. When they were frightened by a shadow they thought was their enemy Sauron, Merry and Pippin take off into the dark forest and find themselves scared and in danger.(Tolkien,Ch.1-6) But as they try to find a way out of the forest, spread the news of the war that is coming and try to find their friends, they become very brave and courageous and are able to face their fears. Later in the book the hobbits realize that the shadow they were so afraid of, was indeed their good friend Grandulf. The Orcs, another breed of creatures, are also the enemies of Merry, Pippin and their friends. After running in to the forest Merry and Pippin found themselves surrounded by a group of Orcs. They tried to fight their way out but alas they were defeated and taken hostage. While their friends Aragorn and Gimli tried to track down the twins, Merry and Pippin were on an adventure on their own. The Orcs had kept them alive, because they would be useful in getting information from the twins. When the Orcs decided to return to their homeland to meet their leader and present their hostages, Merry and Pippin were dragged along. As they reached a hill the Ors gave Merry and Pippin some type of medicine and the twins seem to have been cured of all their pains. This would give the orcs a break from carrying the hobbits, by making the twins climb down the cliff themselves. The orcs and hobbits never made it too the homeland. In fact on their way there the orcs were defeated by allies of Aragorn and Gimli, known as The Riders of Rohan. Frightened once again, the hobbits took off following a stream into another forest.(Tolkien Ch.5-7) Courage has many meanings, and even though it doesn't seem like the hobbits had any, they did. They had the courage to put up with the bad condition the orcs placed on them and they never gave up hope. Their friends Aragorn and Gimli also had courage because they never gave up on their quest on finding their hobbit companions, no matter how difficult the challenge was. They also had the courage to fight a war against the orcs as they invaded their hideout.(Tolkien, Ch.8-9) Not only are main characters of the book courageous, so are the rest. Treebeard, and Ent (another creature that looks like a tree), showed quite a bit of courage. After being convinced that Sauron was going to destroy the lands of the Ents, himself and the other Ents decide to join the war against the dark ones.(Tolkien, Ch.4-6) Not only does this book show how one can become courageous in moments of doubt, it also teaches the audience that friendship is important and essential to have during a war, but the task of deciding whom to trust can be quite difficult.
When in war, having allies and strong friendships is the key to winning. Throughout the entire book, in almost every chapter, the characters befriend, or try to befriend a new breed of creature or convince others to help them fight for the cause. For example Legolas, Gimli and the others convince the Riders of Rohan that they are on the side of good, and the riders chose to fight beside them in this war but on a condition (which was more of a deal).(Tolkien, 27-54) First Gimli, Legolas and friends would have to rescue the twins Merry and Pippin form the dreadful orcs and return with the horses they had borrowed form the riders of Rohan.(Tolkien,27-54) It was a give and take ordeal. Eomer had said "This is my choice. You may go; and what is more, I will lend you horses. This I only ask: when your quest is achieved, or is proved vain, return with the horses over the Entwade to Meduseld, the high house in Edoras where Theoden now sits. Thus you shall prove to him that I have not misjudged." (Tolkien,48) Merry and Pippin also found great allies with the Ents. After a long 4-5 day meeting the Ents decided to stand with the side of good in the war against the dark.(Tolkien,75-107) Also friends of Grandulf the Grey have to befriend and familiarize themselves with this new Grandulf known as Grandulf the white. (Tolkien, Ch.10). During Chapter ten Grandulf decides to go to the Orthanc Tower to have a discussion with Saruman and the true wily nature of Saruman is revealed. We find out that Saruman is locked in the tower and has been discarded form the council of wizards and id no longer Saruman the white. He is discarded because Grandulf asked him to assist the good side but he refuses so Grandulf breaks his staff. At the end of the chapter, that friendship was not established and Grandulf orders the Treebeard and the Ents to guard the tower. Friendship is not the easiest thing to achieve during war, sometimes you succeed other times you fail. Although, one thing is for sure, character is what affects whether you will side with someone or not. The author does a great job at giving the audience an inside view of each character's personality which later clues the audience in on that person's decisions and purpose.
In order to make sense of a book, the profile of the characters have to be built up very well, because in return that characters personality and status will effect their decisions and plans. Tolkien does not specifically state the characteristics or behavior of every character in this book. He usually leaves clues and descriptions to lead the audience, when they try to figure out the meaning and purpose of each character. Occasionally he describes how a character looks, usually when introducing a new breed of creature in the book. For example when he first introduces Treebeard, he explains there calm and tree like nature.(Tolkien, Ch.4) Tolkien reminds the audience what hobbits look like through the story. When the hobbits first meet Treebeard, it was an strange moment for Treebeard because he thought he new every type of creature, but turns out hobbits were all new to him.(Tolkien,75-81) Merry and Pippin describe themselves and through this both Treebeard and the audience learn about hobbits(Tolkien, Ch.4). Treebeard then adds them to his poem of creatures by saying "Half-grown hobbits, the hole-dwellers." (Tolkien,80) Whenever the friends of Grandulf talk about him, they tell us a little about Grandulf's character. Legolas and Gimli tells the audience how wise and strict Grandulf is. At one point of the book Grandulf's character was challenged because through a confusion he wasn't quite trusted by the Riders of Rohan.(Tolkien, Ch.2) During their little battle in chapter 7, the audience learns more about Legolas' and Gimli's fighting style. Legolas uses a bow and arrow, while Gimli is killed with an ax. The reader also gets a refresher that Grandulf is skilled with a staff and sword. During Chapter two Tolkien build up the profile of the Riders of Rohan by telling the reader about their past, their purpose and why they are apart of the war. We learn more about Theoden during chapter 7 when the allies were being invaded but the enemy, the Orcs. Building up the characters in a book help the audience understand the novel better, and I believe that Tolkien did a great job at this.
In conclusion "The Lord of the Rings" is a wonderful and adventurous book to read, and keeps you on you toes throughout the novel. I would recommend this book to anyone with some spare time and would like to have it taken up by reading a book that draws them into it and keeps them there until the end of the series. Once someone has started reading The Two Towers they will not stop because the book is so amazing. One will be surprised about the amount of courage displayed by many of the characters, the importance of friendship and how descriptive an author such as Tolkien, can write. The Lord of the Rings and The Two Towers is and will always be an outstanding book for many reasons. As others read this book they will come up with more reasons as to why it deserves to be an outstanding book, but you know my reasons because they have been mentioned time and time again. So if at any time there is need of a great book, The Lord of the Rings is the series to try, after all it is the series of the hour.
What would you do, if you had no idea where your ally and friend was during a war??
Songs from www.imeem.com Get songs for you wiki there as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdEOmZyYCKw
Above is the video link.
Lord of the Rings : The Two Towers
By: J.R.R TolkienLord of the Rings Video
Below is where I got the video from.
Jenny, "Lord of the Rings : Two Towers." Youtube.com. 26 Oct 2007 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd6S5JCcOPg.
Never judge a book by it's cover. This is a saying every reader has heard time and time again. Some may follow it's lesson, while others, like myself, don't pay any attention to that saying and completely ignore it. "The Lord of the Rings" was one of those books that I rather not read,or so I thought. The first time I saw the movie "The Lord of the Rings", for some reason I hated it. But after failing to find any interest in the other books I read, I decided to give "The Lord of the Rings and the Two Towers" a try. To my astonishment I loved it. I loved every bit of it. The Lord of the Rings and The Two Towers is a great book to read for a number of reasons : it displays a great deal of courage,it teaches us that friendship never hurt anyone and the author is very detailed when writing about the characters in this book.
Courage is a characteristic that all the characters in the book possess. Merry and Pippin are two hobbits (which are creatures that are short and are hole dwellers) in this story that are faced with many challenges. When they were frightened by a shadow they thought was their enemy Sauron, Merry and Pippin take off into the dark forest and find themselves scared and in danger.(Tolkien,Ch.1-6) But as they try to find a way out of the forest, spread the news of the war that is coming and try to find their friends, they become very brave and courageous and are able to face their fears. Later in the book the hobbits realize that the shadow they were so afraid of, was indeed their good friend Grandulf. The Orcs, another breed of creatures, are also the enemies of Merry, Pippin and their friends. After running in to the forest Merry and Pippin found themselves surrounded by a group of Orcs. They tried to fight their way out but alas they were defeated and taken hostage. While their friends Aragorn and Gimli tried to track down the twins, Merry and Pippin were on an adventure on their own. The Orcs had kept them alive, because they would be useful in getting information from the twins. When the Orcs decided to return to their homeland to meet their leader and present their hostages, Merry and Pippin were dragged along. As they reached a hill the Ors gave Merry and Pippin some type of medicine and the twins seem to have been cured of all their pains. This would give the orcs a break from carrying the hobbits, by making the twins climb down the cliff themselves. The orcs and hobbits never made it too the homeland. In fact on their way there the orcs were defeated by allies of Aragorn and Gimli, known as The Riders of Rohan. Frightened once again, the hobbits took off following a stream into another forest.(Tolkien Ch.5-7) Courage has many meanings, and even though it doesn't seem like the hobbits had any, they did. They had the courage to put up with the bad condition the orcs placed on them and they never gave up hope. Their friends Aragorn and Gimli also had courage because they never gave up on their quest on finding their hobbit companions, no matter how difficult the challenge was. They also had the courage to fight a war against the orcs as they invaded their hideout.(Tolkien, Ch.8-9) Not only are main characters of the book courageous, so are the rest. Treebeard, and Ent (another creature that looks like a tree), showed quite a bit of courage. After being convinced that Sauron was going to destroy the lands of the Ents, himself and the other Ents decide to join the war against the dark ones.(Tolkien, Ch.4-6) Not only does this book show how one can become courageous in moments of doubt, it also teaches the audience that friendship is important and essential to have during a war, but the task of deciding whom to trust can be quite difficult.
When in war, having allies and strong friendships is the key to winning. Throughout the entire book, in almost every chapter, the characters befriend, or try to befriend a new breed of creature or convince others to help them fight for the cause. For example Legolas, Gimli and the others convince the Riders of Rohan that they are on the side of good, and the riders chose to fight beside them in this war but on a condition (which was more of a deal).(Tolkien, 27-54) First Gimli, Legolas and friends would have to rescue the twins Merry and Pippin form the dreadful orcs and return with the horses they had borrowed form the riders of Rohan.(Tolkien,27-54) It was a give and take ordeal. Eomer had said "This is my choice. You may go; and what is more, I will lend you horses. This I only ask: when your quest is achieved, or is proved vain, return with the horses over the Entwade to Meduseld, the high house in Edoras where Theoden now sits. Thus you shall prove to him that I have not misjudged." (Tolkien,48) Merry and Pippin also found great allies with the Ents. After a long 4-5 day meeting the Ents decided to stand with the side of good in the war against the dark.(Tolkien,75-107) Also friends of Grandulf the Grey have to befriend and familiarize themselves with this new Grandulf known as Grandulf the white. (Tolkien, Ch.10). During Chapter ten Grandulf decides to go to the Orthanc Tower to have a discussion with Saruman and the true wily nature of Saruman is revealed. We find out that Saruman is locked in the tower and has been discarded form the council of wizards and id no longer Saruman the white. He is discarded because Grandulf asked him to assist the good side but he refuses so Grandulf breaks his staff. At the end of the chapter, that friendship was not established and Grandulf orders the Treebeard and the Ents to guard the tower. Friendship is not the easiest thing to achieve during war, sometimes you succeed other times you fail. Although, one thing is for sure, character is what affects whether you will side with someone or not. The author does a great job at giving the audience an inside view of each character's personality which later clues the audience in on that person's decisions and purpose.
In order to make sense of a book, the profile of the characters have to be built up very well, because in return that characters personality and status will effect their decisions and plans. Tolkien does not specifically state the characteristics or behavior of every character in this book. He usually leaves clues and descriptions to lead the audience, when they try to figure out the meaning and purpose of each character. Occasionally he describes how a character looks, usually when introducing a new breed of creature in the book. For example when he first introduces Treebeard, he explains there calm and tree like nature.(Tolkien, Ch.4) Tolkien reminds the audience what hobbits look like through the story. When the hobbits first meet Treebeard, it was an strange moment for Treebeard because he thought he new every type of creature, but turns out hobbits were all new to him.(Tolkien,75-81) Merry and Pippin describe themselves and through this both Treebeard and the audience learn about hobbits(Tolkien, Ch.4). Treebeard then adds them to his poem of creatures by saying "Half-grown hobbits, the hole-dwellers." (Tolkien,80) Whenever the friends of Grandulf talk about him, they tell us a little about Grandulf's character. Legolas and Gimli tells the audience how wise and strict Grandulf is. At one point of the book Grandulf's character was challenged because through a confusion he wasn't quite trusted by the Riders of Rohan.(Tolkien, Ch.2) During their little battle in chapter 7, the audience learns more about Legolas' and Gimli's fighting style. Legolas uses a bow and arrow, while Gimli is killed with an ax. The reader also gets a refresher that Grandulf is skilled with a staff and sword. During Chapter two Tolkien build up the profile of the Riders of Rohan by telling the reader about their past, their purpose and why they are apart of the war. We learn more about Theoden during chapter 7 when the allies were being invaded but the enemy, the Orcs. Building up the characters in a book help the audience understand the novel better, and I believe that Tolkien did a great job at this.
In conclusion "The Lord of the Rings" is a wonderful and adventurous book to read, and keeps you on you toes throughout the novel. I would recommend this book to anyone with some spare time and would like to have it taken up by reading a book that draws them into it and keeps them there until the end of the series. Once someone has started reading The Two Towers they will not stop because the book is so amazing. One will be surprised about the amount of courage displayed by many of the characters, the importance of friendship and how descriptive an author such as Tolkien, can write. The Lord of the Rings and The Two Towers is and will always be an outstanding book for many reasons. As others read this book they will come up with more reasons as to why it deserves to be an outstanding book, but you know my reasons because they have been mentioned time and time again. So if at any time there is need of a great book, The Lord of the Rings is the series to try, after all it is the series of the hour.
My Final Video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BybTNK9HwWE
Citation for the book: Tolkien, J.R.R. The Lord of the rings. The Two Towers. New York, N.Y: Houghton Mifflin, 1956.
Note: I did not create any of the songs, videos or pictures on this wiki. Websites are listed on, near or below the added object. All pictures from http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=Lord of the rings :Two Towers&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi
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